Xiangzhou District, Zhuhai

Xiangzhou will renovate and rebuild six million square meters of its old industrial area to make room for high-tech industry, it was announced on May 11.

The document, Several Opinions of Accelerating Upgrade and Transformation of Old Industrial Areas specifies how areas can be repurposed to benefit growing industries.

Economic data collected in 2015 reveal that industrial output from enterprises above designated size in these areas account for less than 25 percent of the district's total.

The Xiangzhou government introduces new policies at a briefing on May 11, discussing upgrading and transforming old industrial areas in the district. [Photo / Zhuhai Daily]

According to the Development, Reform and Statistics Bureau of Xiangzhou, the floor area ratio of old industrial areas in the district is between 0.5 and 2.0, which is a low intensity use of the land. Moreover, most of them received upgrades to operate traditional business models, such as building commercial complexes.

Xiangzhou will now take steps to expand urban space in hope of realizing long-term sustainable development, said Wu Nan, director of the bureau. Wu said the government will apply related experience learned from Shenzhen to implement the action, not demolishing buildings if they can be improved.

A government official details the key areas to receive upgrades and transformations. [Photo / Zhuhai Daily]

The policies emphasize the "two belts and one area" – Qianshan-Nanping Industrial Belt, Jiuzhou-Nanwan Avenue Industrial Belt and Demonstration Area of Innovation and Entrepreneurship in northern Xiangzhou – to lay out new advanced development centers. 

They are required to strengthen their infrastructure and service facilities as well as create a better working environment so as to build clusters for high-end manufacturing and technology and modern service industries, and startups.

A map shows how two industrial belts and one area will expand to create more value for investment attraction. [Photo / Zhuhai Daily]

It was highlighted that new factories' that are used for manufacturing and research and development, an area of which makes up not more than a half of total, can be segmented and transferred to qualified enterprises.

"It can solve land shortages and funds for sci-tech small- and medium- sized enterprises," said a government official. "It will also help to attract investment and high-end projects."